Users have been plagued by a problem caused by a limit in number of processes and the way some applications are implemented. Spb Software comes with a solution developers can use for free.

The most common methodology used by Pocket PC developers for implementing background tasks is to create executable files which are stored in the Windows/Startup folder in order to ensure that the program is automatically started following a reset, and continues to run in the background. The problem comes in that the Windows CE operating system limits the number of processes running to 32. For example, in XDA II Pocket PC devices, 28 processes automatically start running immediately after a soft-reset, thus leaving you with only four possibilities for new processes, which limits the number of programs you can run. The Spb Software House solution counteracts this limitation, and developers can implement this solution free of charge within their applications.

Windows Mobile 2003 provides users with a special mechanism implemented in the Services.exe directory that allows Pocket PC developers to shape their background applications into services that run in one process as different threads. An article on Microsoft's MSDN Web site details how developers can implement this solution for their Windows Mobile 2003-based applications.

Jason Dunn, VP of Marketing tells us that "Pocket PCs have revolutionized the mobile computing world. Having a limitation on the number of processes a device can have working at one time suddenly puts a black mark on this revolution. It wasn't until the release of the XDA II, which has many background processes, that this problem became apparent. We've found an easy, free way to overcome this restriction. We're encouraging all Pocket PC developers to update their programs to remove this restriction - their users will thank them for it." Spb Software House has already updated several of their applications, and by as new versions are released all products with background processes will use the new services methodology.

Pocket PC 2000 and 2002 devices are incompatible with this specific solution, so Spb has also created a sevices.exe solution that will replicate the Windows Mobile 2003 solution.